The Russian group, named Nobelium, gained access to the company’s systems on January 12 and stole emails and documents.
Microsoft writes that the hackers gained access to “a very small percentage” of the company’s e-mail accounts, but that among those affected were top managers and employees in the departments for data security and law.
The group has several names, including Midnight Blizzard and Cozy Bear, and the US believes it is affiliated with the Russian intelligence service SVR. It is best known for having hacked the Democratic National Committee in connection with the 2016 presidential election.
The attack itself began in November, when the hackers tried a password on a large number of accounts and hit on an old test account, which they then used to gain access to other accounts, Microsoft says.
According to the company, there is no indication that they gained access to customer accounts, production systems, source code or AI software.
– Given the reality of threatening actors who are financed and given resources by nation states, we are adjusting the balance we have to have between security and business risk, says the company.
Microsoft products are widely used by the US government, and the company came under fire last year after Chinese hackers stole emails from high-ranking figures in the US State Department.
(©NTB)
2024-01-20 01:46:59
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